China’s Sanya City Issues New Patent Subsidy Measures Despite CNIPA’s Push to End Them
On November 8, 2021, the city of Sanya in Hainan publicized the new Sanya City Intellectual Property Funding Management Measures (三亚市知识产权资助金管理办法) effective December 1, 2021. This is despite the China National Intellectual Property Administration‘s (CNIPA) push to end all patent subsidies by 2025 as announced in the Notice of the CNIPA on Further Strictly Regulating Patent Application Behavior. Sanya will grant up to 300,000 RMB (~47 thousand USD) for trademarks and up to 500,000 RMB for patents.
Per Article 6 of the Measures,
For domestically authorized invention patents, each subsidy does not exceed RMB 5,000 ; for invention (standard) patent applications to Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, that grant (registered) each subsidy does not exceed RMB 5,000; … for the invention patents authorized abroad, the subsidy shall not exceed 50,000 RMB per item in Europe, the United States, and Japan, and no more than 30,000 RMB per item in other countries (regions) not to exceed five countries.
For international trademark applications filed and registered through the Madrid system, 10,000 RMB will be granted for each application.
300,000 yuan RMB will be given to enterprises that have obtained well-known trademarks.
Per Article 12, Sanya will grant up to 500,000 RMB to patentees that have won the national Chinese patent gold award with smaller grants for silver and excellence awards and municipal-level awards.
Per Article 7, geographical indications are entitled to subsidies.
Encourage the protection and use of geographical indications, and grant 100,000 RMB for each approved geographical indication protection product or geographical indication trademark.
Other Articles provide grants for patented technology developed into standards, opening new patent agencies, operating patent agencies with more than 200 patents granted annually, etc.
These Measures are despite CNIPA’s push to end patent subsidies with all patent subsidies to end by 2025 and subsidies for Chinese patent applications to end by June 30, 2021 (except for granting) although these Measures do seem to be in compliance with CNIPA’s Notice.
The full text is available here (Chinese only).
